Grading the Eagles: No A’s for a lackluster showing in loss to Cowboys | Paul Domowitch
Grading the Eagles in the aftermath of Sunday night’s 37-10 loss to the Cowboys.
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz walks along the bench in the 4th quarter in the Philadelphia Eagles fall 37-10 to the Dallas Cowboys.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
The Eagles fell to the division rival Dallas Cowboys, 37-10, on Sunday at AT&T Stadium. They are now 3-4 on the season.
How did the offense, defense and special teams perform? Paul Domowitch offers his grades, and then you can award your own.
Rushing offense
The ground game was one of the few areas that escaped blame in Sunday night’s embarrassing defeat. The Eagles averaged 4.5 yards per carry in the first half. Jordan Howard had another solid effort, while rookie Miles Sanders got just six carries.
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Grade: B
Passing offense
The protection was inconsistent all night. Carson Wentz was sacked three times, lost two fumbles and threw a bad interception. Tight end Zach Ertz didn’t have a catch until the fourth quarter, and for the third time in the last four games, Wentz had less than 200 passing yards.
Grade: D
Rushing defense
The Eagles came into the game with the league’s second-ranked run defense (72.8 yards per game). But Ezekiel Elliott and the Cowboys ran on them with amazing ease. Elliott had 111 yards on 22 carries and the Cowboys finished with 189 rushing yards, three rushing TDs and 10 rushing first downs. There were a disconcerting number of missed tackles, including a really bad one by cornerback Orlando Scandrick on the Cowboys’ first touchdown, a 20-yard run by Tavon Austin.
Grade: D
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz goes after the fumbled football during the fourth quarter. The Cowboys recovered the football and scored.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott runs with the football colliding against Eagles free safety Rodney McLeod during the third quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles defensive tackle Fletcher Cox goes after the loose football past Dallas Cowboys offensive guard Connor Williams during the third quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott tumbles with the football against Eagles outside linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill (center) and linebacker T.J. Edwards during the third quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz throws the football during the fourth quarter past Dallas Cowboys defensive end Kerry Hyder.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz bows his head on the Eagles sidelines during the fourth quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway gets carted off the field during the third quarter against the Dallas Cowboys.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett goes after Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott during the third quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles strong safety Malcolm Jenkins grabs Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott after a Prescott run during the third quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles tight end Zach Ertz gets the pass deflected away by Dallas Cowboys middle linebacker Jaylon Smith during the third quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz throws the football past Dallas Cowboys cornerback Jourdan Lewis during the third quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles wide receiver Alshon Jeffery catches the football past Dallas Cowboys cornerback Chidobe Awuzie (center) and Dallas Cowboys free safety Xavier Woods during the third quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott runs with the football against Eagles strong safety Malcolm Jenkins during the third quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten is tackled by Eagles linebacker Nate Gerry, right, and strong safety Malcolm Jenkins, left, in the second quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott, left, makes Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham, right, miss on a run in the second quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys kicker Brett Maher, center, celebrates a 63-yard field goal as Eagles defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway, left, looks on at the end of the second quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, right, slides as the end of a run as Dallas Cowboys middle linebacker Jaylon Smith, left, chases him down in the second quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys tight end Blake Jarwin scores a second-quarter touchdown against the Eagles.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett looks over at a game official during the second quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott gets rid of football past Eagles defensive end Josh Sweat during the second quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert celebrates his first-quarter touchdown with teammate running back Miles Sanders.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert catches a first-quarter touchdown past Dallas Cowboys outside linebacker Leighton Vander Esch (left) and strong safety Jeff Heath.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Eagles cornerback Jalen Mills tries to stop Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard during the first quarter.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott celebrates a first down past Eagles cornerback Rasul Douglas (right) and cornerback Orlando Scandrick during the first down.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Maliek Collins recovers Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert's fumble during the first quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson the sidelines against the Dallas Cowboys during the first quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz loses the fumble getting sacked by Dallas Cowboys defensive end Demarcus Lawrence during the first quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz walks off the field after fumbling the football against the Dallas Cowboys during the first quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles cornerback Jalen Mills tries to stop Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard during the first quarter.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Passing defense
Cornerback Jalen Mills returned to the field for the first time in nearly a year, but it didn’t make a damn bit of difference. They kept the ball in front of them better than they did last week against the Vikings, but couldn’t get consistent pressure on Dak Prescott, who completed 21 of 27 passes and averaged 8.8 yards per attempt. In their last two games, opponents have completed 76.8 percent of their pass attempts.
Grade: D
Special teams
Jake Elliott made his only field goal attempt, a 38-yarder. Cam Johnston had a 46.7-yard net average. An illegal block by Rudy Ford wiped out a nice punt return by Boston Scott early in the third quarter. They also were late getting an eleventh player on the field on Brett Maher’s 63-yard field goal at the end of the first half.
Grade: B-minus
Overall
This easily was one of the worst defeats of Doug Pederson’s tenure. Right up there with last year’s 48-7 embarrassment in New Orleans. They rebounded from that loss and ended up making the playoffs. But they had a pass rush last season, and they had an offense that could move the ball. This one is hit and miss. Sunday night, it was mostly miss. The 3-4 Eagles are starting to look like a dead team walking.
